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07/19/2019

LTSS Budget Appropriations Remain Despite Vetoes

LTSS Budget Appropriations Remain Intact Despite Vetoes

For an up-to-date account of Ohio’s budget process, join the Budget in Brief call on Monday, July 22 at 10 by dialing (800) 582-3014, access code 60427031#.

Once the official veto boxed text was made available late yesterday afternoon, we are pleased to confirm the increased funding appropriated for LTSS in HB 166 remains. The Administration is committed to working with stakeholders through the rate setting process to achieve the desired outcomes for HCBS as outlined in HB 166. We look forward to working with the Administration throughout the stakeholder process and will continue to advocate for the best outcome for those we serve. 

Per a request by the Ohio Department of Medicaid, LeadingAge Ohio will be meeting with ODM and other nursing home associations this weekend and in the coming days to work through the implementation of the Quality Incentive Program (QIP) and how best to proceed. It is our understanding there is a technical issue with the language adopted by the Conference Committee that would have created a doubling of the inflationary adjustment in year two of the biennium.  We will work with our stakeholder partners and ODM to deliver a QIP for nursing homes.

This has been a long budget process, but a very successful outcome. We want to thank all of our members for their advocacy efforts throughout the past year. Your voices in meetings with legislators, in Statehouse committees, and within LeadingAge Ohio allowed us to achieve our goals.  We also want to thank our legislative champions, leaders in the House and Senate, the Administration and Governor DeWine for their dedication and support for our most vulnerable Ohioans. We look forward to our ongoing work as we begin the implementation process.

Please look for ongoing updates, and a more thorough analysis of all of our budget issues in the coming days. 

Questions pertaining to the budget process may be directed to Susan Wallace, Director of Government Relations and Public Affairs, at swallace@leadingageohio.org.

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